Two Navy admirals are now added to the list of naval officers entangled in a massive bribery scandal centered in Asia.

Vice Adm. Ted Branch, director of naval intelligence, and Rear Adm. Bruce Loveless, director of intelligence operations, have been stripped of their access to classified materials and placed on leave, the Navy’s chief spokesman said in a statement Friday night.

The decision was made based upon the nature of allegations against Branch and Loveless in an ongoing investigation by the Navy and the U.S. Attorney in San Diego into alleged illegal business dealings with Malaysian defense contractor Leonard Francis.

Francis’ company, Glenn Defense Marine Asia, has provided the Navy with hundreds of millions of dollars in services in ports around the world.

Neither Branch nor Loveless have been charged, but their involvement boosts the scandal to the highest ranks of the Navy.

The Navy didn’t say why the two are being investigated, just that their alleged incidents occurred before they became admirals.

“The allegations against Admirals Branch and Loveless involve inappropriate conduct prior to their current assignments and flag officer rank. There is no indication, nor do the allegations suggest, that in either case there was any breach of classified information,” Rear Adm. John Kirby, chief of naval information, said in a statement.

“The suspension was deemed prudent given the sensitive nature their current duties and to protect and support the integrity of the investigative process.”

Branch, an aviator, previously was an executive assistant to the commander of the Pacific Fleet. He was promoted to vice admiral in July when he took over as director of naval intelligence.

He served at least three high-profile tours in San Diego, including commanding officer of the Carl Vinson strike group in 2010, skipper of the aircraft carrier Nimitz in 2004 and commanding officer of the Third Fleet command ship Coronado in 2001.

Loveless assumed his current job at the Pentagon in February. He also commanded the U.S. Pacific Command’s Joint Intelligence Operations Center, based at Pearl Harbor, from 2009 to 2012.

Earlier Friday, Francis and one of the Navy commanders charged in the case, Michael Vannak Khem Misiewicz, appeared in federal court in San Diego for a routine hearing.

NCIS agent John Beliveau II, who is charged with giving sensitive law-enforcement files to Francis to help him avoid scrutiny, waived his appearance and was represented by an attorney.

Attorneys in the case said they expect to file various motions in the case within the next week, including one to declare the case “complex” due to the inordinate amount of discovery involved.

Misiewicz is also waiting to hear if he will be granted a court-appointed attorney.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark Pletcher said he will be requesting a protective order on the discovery, which would prevent defense attorneys from sharing evidence about the case, potentially even with their clients. He cited the allegations of leaks already in the investigation, which included Beliveau “feeding insider law enforcement information” to Francis and advising him “how to actively thwart the investigation.”

He asked the protective order in this case be even more comprehensive than usual.

The next court date is set for Feb. 28, when motions will be heard.

Also, GDMA manager Alex Wisidagama of Singapore entered a not guilty plea in San Diego federal court on Thursday. He is being held without bail.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office declined to comment Friday on the Navy suspensions.